The Secret Circle Trailer and L.J. Smith Challenge

I am pretty excited by the shows picked up for this fall TV season. I'll be highlighting the ones I'm looking forward to most on Intimate Strangers this week, but you have to know I'm really looking forward to The Secret Circle.

Along with The Vampire Diaries and her other series, I read The Secret Circle books years ago and loved them. Since Kevin Williamson was brought on board to help with the pilot of this show, I'm hopeful because I've really enjoyed The Vampire Diaries show (even though it has strayed far from the books).

And let's face it, I loved these books, but they undoubtedly retain the flavor of the 90s. Even so I decided I wanted to try to reread them before the show starts in the fall and revive the L.J. Smith challenge. So this is just a light summer challenge for anyone interested in reading the books before the show starts. Just fill out the form below and let me know if you plan to join in and I'll add your name to a participants list. I'll put up a link up post to link your reviews to. Since The Vampire Diaries and The Secret Circle will be on the same night this fall (Thursday), I hope to recap both shows as well.



I'm also posting the extended trailer to get you excited. It's six minutes long and basically spoils the plot of the pilot I think, but it should also get you excited! A few things of note: the coven has been reduced to only 6 members, it takes place in Washington instead of New Salem :(, no people of color to be found??? Hopefully this will be remedied quickly, yes that's an Arcade Fire song during part of the trailer.

The Vampire Diaries News

As you all know, I'm a huge fan of The Vampire Diaries, both the books (especially when I was younger) and the TV show. (Ian!!!)

The show comes back September 9th and looks better than ever! Check out this juicy trailer!

In other excellent news, Ian Somerhalder was voted as the sexiest beast during Entertainment Weekly's tournament. There are simply no words for how much I love this!

Finally, a series of Vampire Diaries prequels are going to be released. I do not understand. These are essentially books for fans of the TV shows that will explore the Salvatore brothers' lives during the Civil War era and have nothing to do with the actual books. They will be called Stefan's Diaries...cute huh? Which means I probably won't read them. But here's the cover anyway:



Most important! I will be recapping the Vampire Diaries every week right here on the blog! I invite you to link up your own recap posts. This will be an ongoing part of the L.J. Smith challenge. I'm adding The Forbidden Game trilogy as the books to read this year, and will be making the announcement a little later than originally planned because I hope to do something fun with it! Haven't read the Forbidden Game? One word for you. Julian. The Forbidden Game was recently rereleased in omnibus format from Simon Pulse. These were my favorite L.J. Smith books growing up.

Who's excited for the Vampire Diaries to come back?

A Chat with L.J. Smith!

I am beyond thrilled to be hosting L.J. Smith today for Harper Collins 28 Days of Winter Escapes in promotion of her new book The Vampire Diaries: The Return:Shadow Souls This is pretty much a dream come true for me since L.J. Smith's books have meant so much to me and my life as a reader. Please be sure to visit the official 28 Day Giveaway site to learn how you can win a copy of the book! I now give you L.J. Smith!

1. Elena and Stefan have an undeniable bond. What, in your mind, is the biggest clue that you’re in love with someone?

Hmm, I think that it would differ with different people—and especially with a selfish lover versus a giving lover. For instance, Damon is also in love with Elena, but he doesn’t typically make sacrifices to please her. He’s a selfish lover—but in the new Vampire Diaries books he will learn a thing or two. Stefan is a giving lover, and he already knows that being able to make sacrifices (from what to do on a winter afternoon to putting his life on the line) is the biggest clue that he’s truly in love with Elena. He’d even let her hold the TV remote . . . if he had a TV.

2. Stefan and Damon are always in competition for Elena’s love, among other things . . . is it possible that the brothers will ever get over their rivalry?

Well, that happens to be the very focus of the new trilogy. In Shadow Souls and Midnight the brothers are forced to work together—or at least on the same side. But while Stefan would probably try anything for Elena, Damon is more like a half-tamed panther relentlessly stalking her every move. The question each day is: Will the good, helpful Damon come out or will the wicked, wild Damon emerge? So it really depends on Damon—who’s not very dependable.

3. Which brother, Stefan or Damon, would you rather go on a date with?

If I get to be Elena, or even Bonnie, I would want to go out with Damon. I’d probably be scared half out of my mind—but I’d have a wickedly spectacular time and it would be an experience to remember. Unfortunately, I don’t think Damon would date any other female as much as dine on her. In that case, of course I’d go with Stefan. His gentlemanly manners would keep him from revealing that he was thinking about Elena the whole time.

4. What gift do you think Stefan would give to Elena on Valentine’s Day?

Ah, there is a little story about this that I am going to post on the Internet—or perhaps gather together with other little stories that had to be cut from the books. Therefore, I know exactly what Stefan gave to Elena for Valentine’s Day—although he has never spent a day in February with her. So I’m afraid I can’t reveal everything about it yet, but clever readers will realize that in Shadow Souls Elena has a gift from Stefan that we never actually see him give her. A gift that she values more than even her diary! There has to be a story behind that.

5. Would you rather receive flowers and chocolates or a handwritten card and photograph from a special someone on Valentine’s Day?

I want all of them! And where is the perfume and diamonds? (That’s my inner Elena being greedy.) But although it’s hard to give up the flowers—I love flowers!—I would deeply appreciate a handmade card and photograph. Of course, of all the guys Elena has dated, only Stefan would be likely to make her a card. He might well have been a skilled artist and he would certainly have more patience than Damon.

6. How do you beat the cold nights of winter?

Some people might think that this is a silly question, when the “cold” nights of Southern California in winter only dip into the 50s on a bad day. But I live in Northern California, where we have actual seasons, and it gets cold enough to leave frost on the lawn at night. I beat those chilly nights with a snuggly down robe, a crackling fire, and a big cup of steaming chai tea. (You can’t live in the Bay Area and not love chai tea.)

7. What would your suggested destination be for a romantic vacation with a vampire boyfriend?

Ohh . . . it would have to be incredibly beautiful—and I wouldn’t want any other people around. A château in France, a castle in Italy . . . fortunately my vampire boyfriend could afford things like that (vampires tend to live a long time and get very rich). But let’s not be mercenary. What about a simple yacht and a deserted island of our own where we could toast each other with Black Magic wine and then nibble on . . . well, I’m sure we’d think of something.

8. What book are you looking forward to reading this winter?

Very unromantically, I am just starting The Brain That Changes Itself, about neuropsychology, and a book about the materials and methods employed by the U.S. Secret Service. But I am also “reading” my own mind’s writing, which includes new books in the Vampire Diaries and Night World series, and a few books so new I barely have titles for them, like The Moonbride and Brionwy’s Lullabie.

9. Do you believe in soul mates?

Of course I do! While I’m not quite sure that there is only one person in the world who is your soul mate, and while I don’t think that if your true love dies you will never find love again, I do think that people can fall in love very deeply and that that love can last a lifetime. If that doesn’t describe a soul mate, what does?

10. Do you have a favorite quote about love to share?

Oh, many! But I like this simple beginning to “Vivien’s Song,” by Alfred, Lord Tennyson:

In Love, if Love be Love, if Love be ours,
Faith and unfaith can ne'er be equal powers:
Unfaith in aught is want of faith in all.

Of course, this is Vivien singing and Vivien is the one who lured Merlin into a hollow tree and trapped him there in the story of King Arthur. I can just imagine Damon using the same sort of “logic” to try to trap Elena into doing something she’d regret.

I do have an alternate, if that isn’t quite the mood you had in mind. I have always loved the final words at the death of Jean Valjean in the play Les Misérables:

And remember the words that once were spoken:

To love another person is to see the face of God . . .

If you love L.J. Smith, I hope you'll consider joining my ongoing L.J. Smith reading challenge!

Review: The Awakening by L.J. Smith The Vampire Diaries Book One

I've shared before how much of an impact these books had on my life--they are responsible for my love of vampires. I was always annoyed when people acted like Twilight was the first teen vampire romance even though I hadn't read these books in years. I just remember the feeling they gave me...I fell in love with them.

So I was excited when Harper Teen reissued them and excited when news of the TV show first came out. (and yes I'm watching it and loving it!)

But I realized I needed to reread the books...I was forgetting them!

When I first started my reread, I realized immediately that I wasn't 14 anymore. And I have to admit I was perplexed as to why I had been drawn to these books to begin with. I was nothing like Elena Gilbert as a teen...she's a Blair Waldorf queen of the school character! But it didn't take long for me to get sucked back in...I think I just imagined myself as 14 again and loved it!

Elena Gilbert has lost her parents and is living with her aunt and young sister. When she goes back to school she is interested in the new guy...but he's not really interested in her at all. This of course ticks her off and makes him the one guy she HAS to have. The truth is Stefan is into her but he's harboring a secret...wait for it..he's a vampire! He likes Elena especially as she reminds him of someone special from long ago. But bad things are happening in town and Stefan fears he's losing control over his blood lust.

I really enjoyed reading this all over again and analyzing why I loved this book so much as a teen. I think it's a mixture of the Halloween/fall feel and the forbidden love. And the ultimate truth in vampire stories of being a total outcast! The book ends on a bit of a cliffhanger that I'm sure KILLED me when I was 14, but this time around..not so much. I do anticipate reading the rest of the books soon, though.

And I do have to say...the TV show has changed quite a lot of the story line, creating a whole new mythology that should be very interesting to watch!

Also, a big huge thanks to Julie of Booking Mama who let me know that The Roaring 20s was having a giveaway of the first book in the Vampire Diares series that included the TV tie-in cover I was coveting! I was happy to read this book. ;)

Rating: 4/5
Source of Book: No strings attached giveaway win.
Publisher: Harper Teen

Review Links for the L.J. Smith Reading Challenge

Please post your reviews of the L.J. Smith books, The Vampire Diaries below. Please post in this format Blog Name (book title) i.e My Friend Amy (The Awakening) Please use permalinks only!

PS The button above is our winning button from Heather!

Take Me Back to My Youth! Or the L.J. Smith Reading Challenge

When I was but a mere young one, a friend gave me this book:



And it changed my life. I'm not kidding. This book Changed.My.Life.

I credit this book (and series) for my life-long love affair with vampires and fascination with the paranormal. I loved it. Absolutely loved it. I read everything I could by L.J. Smith, and I loved it all. And then I became an older high schooler and thought I was too old for YA fiction and started reading classics and literature and stuff. (I'm not kidding, I was the biggest book snob!! Well, except for a little bit of Elizabeth George and Anne Rice)

And I traded in my L.J. Smith books. And then HORROR! They went out of print!!! They were selling for like 50 dollars a piece on eBay! And she disappeared off the face of the earth! So in some ways, I think I owe Stephenie Meyer and the success of the Twilight series for getting my L.J. Smith books back in print, so I could buy them all again (except still waiting on a few series!)

Why am I telling you all of this? Because on September 10th the CW is premiering...get this....The Vampire Diaries TV show!!! I am beside myself with mad excitement and anticipation!!! I have seen the pilot and the cast at Comic-Con and it is VERY promising! I loved it! (even though I seemed to be sitting amongst a bunch of guys who were just there for the Myth Busters panel)

Let's get something out of the way first, though. The Vampire Diaries is NOT Twilight. It's better. It's not a Twilight rip-off. It came first. Okay.

So to get everyone else all excited about the show and watching faithfully and keeping it on the air for many years, I present you with this:




Oops! I mean, I present to you the L.J. Smith Reading Challenge: Phase 1. The first phase will be reading the Vampire Diaries. This phase will last for a year, and then we will move onto another series. I like to keep things simple and manageable for those of us who have already signed up for fourteen thousand challenges comprised of 87,000 books, or for those of you who might join in that don't read that many books in a year, and the very thought makes you want to run and hide! I really really hope that many people will join in the challenge. Have you already read the Vampire Diaries? No problem! Reread them!

Here's how it will work:
I'm going to put a Mister Linky at the end of this post. All you have to do is put your blog's url in the Mister Linky indicating that you are signing up. If you don't have a blog, just put your name!

The challenge will begin September 1st. I will post another Mister Linky that day where you can put links to your reviews. The challenge will last one year. I think there will be some prizes along the road, we'll see.

Every Friday, after the Vampire Diaries has aired, I will post a recap. If enough people express interest in doing the same, I will add a Mister Linky to those posts as well so we can all read each other's opinions and theories. It will be fantastic.

Button Contest
As you can see, I don't have a button for the challenge. So if anyone has mad crazy design skills and wants to design one this weekend, I'll post any submissions on Tuesday with a poll for voting. I will buy the winning designer the first omnibus in the Vampire Diaries series! Just send our submissions to mypalamyATgmailDOTcom

Here are the books in the series:
The Awakening
The Struggle
The Fury
Dark Reunion
And the ongoing story in
The Vampire Diaries: The Return: Nightfall

So here are all the details again since this is the world's longest Introduction to a Challenge Post:
What are we reading? L.J. Smith's The Vampire Diaries!
What are we watching? The Vampire Diaries on the CW!
When do we start? September 1st!
When do we have to finish? August 31st, 2010
Who's that guy in the photo? Lenore's celebrity love match Ian Somerhalder who plays Damon in the Vampire Diaries!

Sign Mister Linky! Tell your friends! Let's get excited! Vamps! Ian! Books! The CW! Woo!